Branding.
The word feels slightly dirty to me. To brand me, myself, just seems like the ultimate act in arrogance and narcissism- at least that was my old paradigm of thought. I’ve recently revisited my past assumptions and started to re-evaluate my perceptions of personal branding. When you’re trying to move people to take action, based on your visions of a better, more balanced society, you’d best embrace the act of branding yourself and your beliefs. Or no one will listen.
I also believe the world is super saturated with corporate branding- it dictates what we purchase, how we interact in certain social situations, and in today’s world, corporate branding is influencing young people’s sense of self worth and their role in the world. Insert Hannah Montana or Lebron James here and you see what I mean.
During some recent inner reflection on how to grow my blog and spread me message to the world, I realized that the missing link was two fold- my lack of proper implementation of social media and my lack of branding. Branding, me?
Yep. I needed to brand myself in order to get my passions for storytelling, independent travel, location independent living and my philosophies on life in general out into the world and hopefully into people’s conversations. Oh boy. I had to embrace my inner narcissist, make peace with with my ego and lay it all out on the table.
photo by brooke mayo photography
In this line of work, when YOU are the person delivering the message- not a corporate behemoth or lacky CEO mouthpiece- in the hopes of helping others and sharing your perspectives on a simple life, the brand has to be you. All you warts, your burs and your bumps- all your beauty, your simplicity, your compassion and your knowledge. You have to become the face of your beliefs. Not a cartoon, not an avatar, not a fictional being. You. Period.
Social media is powered by conversation. By real people engaging with one another regarding topics they are passionate about. That’s the heart of social media and if you’re going to build your “Tribe” you must be a strong presence and embrace the transparency and authenticity that drives social media.
Let’s face it, if you’re not transparent or authentic, should you really be trying to build a “Tribe” and lead people to a different way of living. Hell no. Stop now, find another avenue of work and use Facebook to update endlessly about your dog or your children.
Over the years, I’ve never quite nailed down the art of branding. Yes, I know, it’s not rocket science. My venture into lifestyle design began 15 years ago, before there was the 4HWW, webinars about blogging empires and social media was what you did at the bar on the weekend and then spread through the gossip grapevine on Monday. I began freelancing in 2000, before a website was even necessary for a business. I taught myself the traditional business models and engaged in a ton of trial and error. I had a darkroom when I launched my freelance business- and I used it for commerce.
Wrap your brain around that one!
So, branding and identity has always been a challenge for me. What is the business entity, what should it entail, should each genre of photography be a separate business, do I need to have an LLC for each photographic specialty? Toss in writing and multimedia and blog development and well- my brain just curls up in the fetal position and cries for its mommy when I start to tackle the issue of branding.
Exhausting.
Last week I had my a-ha moment. Finally. Its not the business that needs to be branded, dumb ass, it’s you. You are the person behind the camera, you’re the person writing these blog postings, you’re the person producing the multimedia. It’s YOU. And YOU are the person people are contacting about how to engage in their own Walkabout to change their reality. (that happened last week- so amazing!) You’re the person landing multimedia jobs by word of mouth, over conversations in coffees-houses. It’s because people believe in you and your talent and abilities. It’s that simple.
My branding adventures are coming together- and my face is now splattered all over my Twitter, Facebook, Blog and a hiring/ about my services page . I tied everything together, made it look the same and branded it all- and it’s still a work in progress. Though I’m still struggling about whether or not to separate some of the writing and the photography- I will tie it all in with my name, face and color schemes with my font.
I guess branding isn’t the end of the world when you have a positive message and are trying to start a movement, in fact, it’s necessary. People need someone to trust when they are embarking on the unknown elements of life-altering actions, such as lifestyle design, minimalist living and location independent professional careers. If my branding wasn’t solid and I could not easily be recognized, I’d be doing my readers a disservice and my future “tribe” wouldn’t have a solid leader. So, I’ll continue to brand and hopefully keep building my readership by providing something that inspires them or calls them to action.
At the end of the day, if your message is not solid, if your content is weak and your heart isn’t in the proper place and people don’t understand who you are and why they should care, none of it matters. Your branding a pile of shit, and people can smell that- even through the Twitter.
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